In enclosure type fences, as for example, fences formed of metal posts and steel mesh for enclosing a storage yard or truck or vehicle parking area or the like, it is conventional to provide a swinging gate which is usually locked closed with a chain and conventional lock. The combination of a metal chain and lock is additionally used to lock various types of gates as well as to lock articles, such as bicycles or the like, to fixed posts, etc. However, conventional chains and locks are relatively easy to break or cut using a saw or a heavy duty clipping device or the like. Thus, efforts have been made to provide chains and locks which are more saw resistant and more difficult to otherwise cut or break, but only with limited success. Hence, there has long been a need for a locking device to perform the function of a chain and conventional lock for locking gates, articles such as bicycles, etc., and which locking device is resistant to sawing or cutting or breaking by other tools.
Thus, the invention herein relates to a lock which may perform the function of a conventional chain and lock combination, that is, with a shackle which can encircle relatively large items, such as a portion of a fence or gate, etc., and a locking mechanism so formed as to resist normal cutting or breakage. Alternatively, locking pins or legs may be used instead of a unitary shackle. Such a lock thus completely eliminates the need for conventional chains and provides far better security than is currently available with conventional chain and lock combinations.